'Triveni' is devoted to Art, Literature, and History, Its main function is to interpret the Indian Renaissance in its manifold aspects.
'Triveni' seeks to draw together cultured men and Women in all lands and
establish a fellowship of the spirit, movements that make for Idealism in India as well as elsewhere, receive
Particular attention in these
columns, We count upon the willing
and joyous co-operation of all lovers of the Beautiful and the True.
May this
votive offering prove acceptable to Him who is the source of the ' Triven'
-the Triple Stream of Love, Wisdom and Power !
..........he that
laboureth right for love of Me, Shall
finally attain! But, if in this Thy
faint heart fails, bring Me thy
failure!
-THE SONG CELESTIAL
BY K. RAMAKOTISWARA RAU
I am happy beyond words, to be able once again to
do the work I love. After twenty long months of detention, I was released
unconditionally from the Special Jail, Tanjore, towards the end of April last,
Cut off from home and friends for a
period which seems endless, and prevented from pursuing their normal
avocations, the detenus in Indian prisons lead a weary, monotonous existence, How monotonous, only those who have
passed through it all can tell, But, by special permission of the Chief
Secretary to the Government of Madras, I was allowed to receive a copy of Triveni every quarter. And as I saw one number after another, and watched
its progress as an interested outsider, my heart was gladdened. I realised how
correct was the instinct that guided me to Bangalore in January 1942, during
the interval between two terms of imprisonment. In Bangalore, and amongst
warm-hearted Kannada litterateurs, Triveni
found a new home.
Sampathgiri Rao, the Associate Editor, and the group of friends he gathered
round him, carried on the work, in my absence, with such devotion and
efficiency that Triveni today is not
just alive, but well established and on the way to prosperity, I am exceedingly
grateful to them; and I wish to prove my gratitude by requesting them to
continue the good work they have done so well.
The impasse in Indian politics, created by the
sudden arrest of Gandhiji and other
Congress leaders on August 9, 1942, continues. If, on that fateful morning, the British and Indian
Governments had not become panicky, Gandhiji and Lord Linlithgow would have met
as friends and discussed the implications of the resolution of August 8. The
Cripps offer on the one side and the August resolution on the other, would have
provided a basis for further negotiations. With a great lover of peace like
Gandhiji yearning to offer co-operation to the Allies on reasonable terms, and
with a desire on the part of the British Government to do the right thing by
India, the groundwork of a lasting Indo-British settlement could have been
laid. But the Government of Winston Churchill mistook an offer of peace for a
threat of revolt; they treated Gandhiji as they would treat Hitler or Tojo. The
sad chapter in Indo-British relations which followed is well within everybody’s
memory. Now again, in his convalescence, Gandhiji offers peace,–offers it to
Britain, to the Muslim League, to all those forces that were arrayed against him and sought either
to crush him or to belittle his influence. He has admonished the Indian Press
and his over-critical friends to suspend all criticism till such time as the
British Government makes an answering statement.
It is enough, therefore, for the moment, to point
out that (1) in the offer to the British Government, Gandhiji is willing to let
the Viceroy and the Commander-in-Chief have full control over military
operations, and (2) in that made to the Muslim League, the principle of
Pakistan is conceded, subject to certain well-defined conditions. In both
cases, Gandhiji seems prepared to advise the Congress to go a step farther than
it was willing to do in 1942. For, in
the course of the Cripps negotiations, the Working Committee insisted on
retaining control of defence policy, as distinguished from defence operations,
in the hands of an Indian Minister. Similarly, the Congress would not go
further than conceding full provincial autonomy and residuary powers to the
units of an Indian Union; it never envisaged independent, sovereign States even
as the result of a plebiscite. These proposals might not commend themselves
even to ardent Congressmen and followers of Gandhiji. But he has made the offer
with a genuine desire to end the impasse. And if the impasse is not ended,
owing to the cussedness of Churchill or Jinnah, Gandhiji at least cannot be
blamed for taking up an attitude that is ‘immobile’ or ‘unhelpful ‘. We await
developments, for it is yet too early to anticipate them. But all men of
goodwill must wish Gandhiji success in his efforts.
THE WRITING ‘TRADE’
Dr. Bhabani Bhattacharya initiated a discussion in
the lndian P.E.N. for April regarding
the condition of Indian writers in general and of working journalists in
particular. Succeeding numbers of the Bulletin contain further contributions on
the same, subject by writers of outstanding merit like Prof. Jagirdar. Here is
an instance of a supremely good cause spoiled by bad, and even acrimonious,
advocacy. Dr. Bhattacharya, for instance, indulges in accusations against the
whole tribe of Indian Editors–accusations which I, as an Editor, resent. My
first impulse is to hit back and cry, ‘O, ye scribblers!’ I could name
contributors to Indian periodicals who ‘pirate’ from the writings of other
journalists in India and abroad, or pass off as ‘original’ writing the veriest
piffle rendered, second or third hand, from the Russian or the French. But hard
words cannot mend matters. As Dr. Bhattacharya himself concedes, we Indian
Editors have “trouble enough.” Journals like Triveni have worked under the most depressing conditions. The
utmost we have been able to do for contributors is to put them on the
‘complimentary’ list and to send them a good number of ‘off-prints’ of their
articles. No copyright was ever claimed by the Editor, for the obvious reason
that no payment was made. Several of our contributors have reprinted their
articles in book-form, and they have done us the courtesy to ask for
permission! No question of ‘exploitation’ on our side or of ‘black-legging’ on
theirs ever arose. Triveni has always
welcomed the younger writers and given them a chance to express themselves,–in
many cases, the first chance. They have since become famous, and not once has a
contributor complained of having been overreached. I grant at once that an
Editor ought to pay for every line he prints, and even Triveni will pay the moment it becomes possible.
I certainly endorse the suggestion that the rights
of working journalists should be safeguarded, and preferably through an
organisation like the P. E. N. But it is ungracious, and rather rude, to rub
Editors (with a capital ‘E’!) on the wrong side. They too, in fact, constitute
a branch of the writing ‘trade’ and are keenly alive to the importance of
promoting high class literary effort.
ACHARYA RAY
“A great man, but a simple soul; he dwelt in God,
and loved his fellow-men.” That is how one would like to sum up the character
of the great Acharya who passed away recently. India mourns the loss of a front
rank modern scientist, who was proud of the scientific achievements of India in
the past. He was a great realist who worked for progress and prosperity and yet
was an idealist to the core. In the age of the Mahabharata everyone adored Sri
Krishna, while Sri Krishna himself adored the great Kaurava patriarch, Bhishma.
So too in our day, Gandhiji, whom the world adores, adored Acharya Ray and
lavished on him a brother’s love. The Acharya’s life will be a beaconlight to
generations of Indians, living in the land of the free, but looking back to one
who, in the days of darkness and loss of freedom, upheld the honour of the
race.